US News Metro Long Island Politics

Sports NFL MLB Olympics NBA NHL College Football College Basketball WNBA

Business Personal Finance

Entertainment TV Movies Music Celebrities Awards Theater

Lifestyle Weird But True Sex & Relationships Viral Trends Human Interest Parenting Fashion & Beauty Food & Drink Travel

Health Wellness Fitness Health Care Medicine Men’s Health Women’s Health Mental Health Nutrition

Science Space Environment Wildlife Archaeology

Today’s Paper Covers Columnists Horoscopes Crosswords & Games Sports Odds Podcasts Careers

Email Newsletters Official Store Home Delivery Tips

Switch between CA and NY editions here.

Spirit Airlines deal threatens yet another bailout boondoggle

It’s a strange conundrum: If a company gets too big and successful and dares earn too much money, the US government accuses it of being an evil monopoly and tries to break it up.

And if it loses too much money, the government swoops in and bails it out with taxpayer dollars — as we’ve seen multiple times now, from banking to the auto industry.

Rewarding failure and punishing success isn’t a very smart economic game plan. 

In the latest chapter of this saga, the federal government is reportedly about to provide a half-billion-dollar taxpayer bailout to Spirit Airlines.

Aren’t you excited to learn you may become a shareholder?

It’s not clear how one bankrupt institution — the US government, $39 trillion in debt and counting — can bail out another one, in this case the nation’s sixth-largest airline, with less than 5% of the market.

Spirit Airlines nears deal to be rescued after Trump urges someone to buy bankrupt carrier

Budget airline allegedly nears liquidation after failing to recover from bankruptcy

Spirit Airlines to sell 20 jets, recalls furloughed flight attendants as it grapples with bankruptcy

This story is slightly complicated because Washington played a major role in Spirit’s current financial predicament. 

Three years ago, when........

© New York Post